


In The Beginning

by vianne78



Series: Danae - Shorts and Drabbles [1]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Drabble, Drabble Collection, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Getting to Know Each Other, Pre-Relationship, Random & Short, Short, Short & Sweet, Vorstag is a sweetheart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-03
Updated: 2017-05-03
Packaged: 2018-10-27 19:28:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10815255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vianne78/pseuds/vianne78
Summary: Their journey has only just begun.A series of shorts and drabbles connected to my Danae -series.





	1. Fortnight

**Author's Note:**

> These random snippets just kept pouring out after I had written the first two parts of the Danae -series. They're not really that important or significant in any way, but I enjoyed writing them so much. I hope you find something you like, too.

He realized his usual time was up.   
He briefly thought about bringing up their contract, but buried the idea instantly.   
For two weeks he had followed this peculiar woman on her journey, and he was captivated. He wanted to see where she’d head next.   
He had never met anyone quite like her before. She truly seemed to enjoy helping people, since that was all she had been doing so far.   
And still, if it came to it, she didn’t hesitate to draw out her weapon and kill, either.   
He’d give it another two weeks, and then they could renegotiate the contract.   
Maybe.


	2. Something About Her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He is mesmerized.

Every moment with her raised more questions than he could find answers for. He couldn’t even place her, and usually he was so good at it, too.   
She didn’t have an accent to speak of. She never mentioned a family, or parents, or a home. And all the dust covering her had thrown him way off in the beginning.

When they had met, she had been travelling alone for some time. Naturally, she hadn’t taken the time to find a place safe enough to properly clean up. He hadn’t known that at the time, so her hair had just seemed a dull gray, her skin vaguely ashen and smudgy, her light eyes reserved and dimmed with fatigue.  
Still, there had been something about her, and that something had compelled him to offer his weapon for hire after just a few minutes of conversation, and she hadn’t hesitated. Had even been visibly relieved to have him with her.

As soon as they had left Markarth, she’d asked if he knew any spots for bathing.   
He did, of course, he’d grown up in the area. He had led her to a tiny waterfall that had a hollow behind it, a hidden carving in the rock behind the veil of water, perfect for some privacy.   
It was one of his favorite places, but he hadn’t mentioned it to her.   
She had taken her time. From his vantage point, he had seen plentiful suds from her soap floating away on the swirling water. 

Finally she had come out, and he had tried not to stare. He had failed.  
The real color of her long, thick tresses was a glorious, shimmering silver, so pale it was almost white. Her skin was smooth and glowing, and despite being several tones lighter than any Redguard’s he had ever seen, the color was just as warm and he was pretty sure she was one. Her eyes were more alert, more relaxed now, and they, too, were shining silver, as unusual as her hair, reflecting light almost like mirrors.

He had been gaping at her like an inexperienced runt (which he was not, thank you very much). Even more so, when she had noticed him looking, and smiled at him for the first time.   
He’d been dazzled. He couldn’t tear his eyes off of her for days. 

Being distracted like that soon became a little annoying. After the first week he decided to just go ahead and ask, to maybe get some peace of mind and stop his thoughts from circling around her all the time.   
They had stopped for the night again, and she was sitting on her bedspread, unlacing her boots.  
“So what’s your story?” He threw a couple of pieces of wood into the fire, and tried to act like his interest was purely conversational. As soon as the words were out, he saw her freeze. 

Right. Not a good subject to bring up, then.  
For several heartbeats, she didn’t move. When she finally did, he glimpsed something vanishing from her eyes. Terror? Anger?   
Her voice was quiet, controlled.  
“I don’t really know what my story is. That’s not something I wish to talk about today.”  
He apologized, and was genuinely sorry for reminding her of something clearly painful.   
She waved it off, but that was the first night of their journey together he saw her cry in her fitful sleep.


	3. Meet My Family

“I’d like you to meet some people.”  
“Of course. You’re the boss.”  
“No. This is personal.”  
He looked up from the armor plate he had been cleaning. She seemed almost nervous.  
He set the plate down carefully, wiping his hands.  
“Sounds important.”  
She nodded. “It is.”  
“Then I’d be more than happy to meet them.”  
Her answering smile was so sweet, he hastily bent to pick up the piece of armor to hide his face. Somehow she managed to turn him into a bedazzled tadpole several times a day, and he didn’t want to get caught gaping. Again.

“We’re almost there,” she informed him, and her step had a spring to it he hadn’t witnessed before. Wherever it was she was taking him, she was eager to get there.   
Her hellion of a horse seemed to perk up, too. It raised its head to let out a loud, whinny neigh. It was promptly answered with another neigh from behind the trees.   
“Go on. I know you want to,” she urged, and the black beast needed no more encouraging. It took off ahead of them.   
Soon he caught glimpse of a building, and then she was running, too. He might have admired the manor itself for a moment longer, but what he heard next, made him pause in his tracks.   
It was a child’s voice - no, two voices.  
“Mama!”  
“Mama, you’re home!”

His stomach fell somewhere close to his knees. How in the world had he not thought that she could be married? And of course she would be.  
And by Ysmir, why did he feel like he had just been punched?  
He swallowed thickly and braced himself. No need to be a baby about it.   
Time to meet her family.

She had two girls in her arms when he caught up with her.   
Two girls who looked nothing like her. A Nord and an Imperial, if he was not mistaken. He glanced around, and saw an armored Redguard tending to her horse, and a Nord warrior approaching from the other side of the manor. Both were females.  
Interesting.

She turned her eyes on him, looking so joyous his heart skipped a beat or two.  
“Vorstag, here are the most important people in my life: my daughters. This is Runa,” the blonde Nord girl smiled at him, “and this is Lucia.” Lucia’s smile was a little more shy.   
“They have been mine for almost two years now. Lucia, Runa, meet Vorstag. He’s been travelling with me for a few weeks, keeping me safe in tricky situations... and he’s my friend.”  
He greeted them with a wink, and managed not to grin stupidly at her words.  
Adopted. Of course.

After the warriors had been introduced as her housecarl and steward, true friends as well as members of her family, it had become evident no spouses were around after all.   
This time he hadn’t been able to control his face so well, and grinned very, very stupidly indeed, when the others turned around to enter the manor.   
The Redguard Rayya had caught him, however.   
She’d given him a long, penetrating look, but his grin had only widened, and he swore he’d seen the corner of her lip twitch when she turned away.

He didn’t know why he was so relieved.   
Probably because spouses tended to get jealous, when someone else was accompanying their wife, and jealousy meant trouble.  
Yes. That was it.   
He just didn’t want trouble.   
No other reason, whatsoever.


	4. Cave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vorstag really likes caves.

“A cave. Think we should check it out?”  
He had bent so close his hair brushed her shoulder, and she nearly jumped out of her skin.   
It took a moment to even her heart. She didn’t know which made it race more, the fright or the proximity. With him, the latter seemed to affect her more frequently.  
“Sure. We have time,” she managed, and was proud she sounded almost normal.   
His answering smile sent her poor heart leaping and fluttering against her ribs again.   
For Mara’s sake.  
He’d almost made it to the cave’s mouth, when she had finally gathered her wits and could bring herself to follow.   
He stopped to wait for her, and that boyish, exuberant grin was still there.   
It was adorable. She couldn’t help it. She grinned back.


	5. Nightmare

He was on watch, keeping a vigilant eye on their surroundings.   
The area was full of unpleasant surprises, and they had had their fair share of clashes and close calls in the past couple of days. The moons were out, so at least the visibility was good enough, and they had chosen the spot well.   
They were just inside the edge of a forest, shadowed by trees and half surrounded by a thorny thicket so dense, nothing could push through it and attack them from behind. They hadn’t lit a fire at any point, and had moved quietly. He was pretty sure they were safe for now.

A small noise alerted him to look behind, where her bedroll was. She was whimpering.   
She talked in her sleep sometimes. She had a nightmare about someone assaulting her, the same dream, over and over. He was convinced it was about the past she still, after months, had not brought up. Understandably, if the dream was anything to go by.  
He glanced around to check for any hint of movement, and turned back to her. She muttered something and tossed from her side to lie on her back.   
He was about to continue his watch, but then things got worse than before.

She suddenly winced and started gasping for breath, like she was in pain, or terrified, or both, sheltering her head with her hands. She sounded like a wounded animal.   
He looked around again, worried that the sounds she was making would attract unwanted attention. He decided it would be best to try and wake her up. 

Just as he was about to call out to her, she sat up in a violent, convulsing move, and a ragged scream burst out of her, so full of anguish and misery his heart nearly stopped.   
He didn’t have time to think - he just reacted. He rolled from his spot to get to her, chanting her name, urgently, so very gently, to wake her up just enough to realize it was him calling her and not some monster, and then he was kneeling in front of her. 

She was still holding her hands up like a pitiful shield when she opened her eyes.   
He saw the nightmare lingering in that fraction of a moment she thought he was someone else (“Danae, Danae, it’s me, it’s just me”), and the naked terror right there in her eyes wrenched his heart.   
Then she recognized him. She breathed his name, tears and relief evident in her voice, and he pulled her in his arms, murmuring soothing words against her hair. 

He was still watching out for any movement out on the plains, but most of his attention was on her. Her hands were shaking, gripping his armor like vices, her face buried in his neck.   
He was cradling her head gently, swaying with her like he would with a frightened child. She was crying silently.   
“That’s it, love, it’s over now. Nothing can hurt you. I’m here, Danae. I’m here.”  
They stayed like that for a very long while, both reluctant to let go.


	6. Are You Sure That's a Horse?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shadowmere would totally do something like this.

The damn horse had hated him from the moment he had joined in on their journey.  
It was jealous, he was sure of it. It never missed a chance to try to step on his toes or get in his way, kick his gear around or steal his food.   
It constantly weaseled its way between him and her. Kept pushing and shoving him, particularly in dangerous places. 

And every little thing it did, it managed to do behind her back. Danae had never witnessed any of the hellions stunts, so when he had grumbled about the beast under his breath, she had laughed.  
“Hates you? He just needs some time to get to know you, he’s not very friendly to strangers.”  
And as soon as she looked away, Shadowmere took a sidestep and bumped his formidable rear into him, almost sending him flying to the ditch.   
Glowing red eyes glanced at him, clearly self-satisfied. Then the thing followed Danae again, resting its muzzle on her shoulder and earning a delighted coo from her. Acting all sweet and damn cuddly.  
Vorstag straightened and, muttering a long, colorful string of curses, returned to the path to follow the woman and the horse.


	7. First

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First times are always memorable.

He was standing in the middle of the field, gaping.   
He had heard the rumors, of course, all of Tamriel surely had, but he hadn’t quite believed them to be true.   
Not until this moment.

Now, he was a seasoned warrior. He had seen monsters of many kinds, human and… other.   
He had faced magic, fought enemies outnumbered and against seemingly impossible odds.   
He had slaughtered beasts, squashed villains like pesky bugs and had ambushed countless foes.   
On his journeys he had saved numerous lives and, inevitably, occasionally failed to save some.   
He had been hired by ordinary travelers and murderous bastards alike, served men and women and even children.  
And still, even all that experience did nothing to cushion the sheer impact of the first dragon he ever saw.

“You’ll need your bow,” Danae threw over her shoulder, running towards the roaring, flying mountain. Vorstag blinked, snapping out of his awe.  
Bow. Right. To fight it. Weapons. 

She had already fired - and hit - twice and was notching a third arrow, when he joined her.   
Out of the corner of her eye she saw him grinning madly as he readied his bow, and she felt a familiar, thrilling jolt in her gut.  
He seemed to cause these funny little tugs quite frequently, and they were getting stronger every day.

The dragon landed to attack them, making the ground shake.  
Without hesitation Vorstag charged, and the sound he made was half roar, half laugh. Madman.  
Hearing him, Danae’s knees felt a little soft.   
Yeah. The jolts were definitely getting much stronger.


End file.
